Faster running for busy adults, built to last.
I’ve run every single day since 30 November 2015. Not a rest day, not a missed one. Through a full time job, through bad weather, and through surgery, after which I came back and ran 15:40 at parkrun. That’s the bit I actually coach: not just how to get fast, but how to keep running while life carries on around you.
I’m Gareth Cooke. I went from a four hour marathoner to 2:24:35 while working full time, I’ve been a qualified personal trainer since 2010, and I still race with Barnsley AC. I coach online, so it doesn’t matter where you are.
The runners I work best with are working, busy, already putting in 20 to 40 miles a week, and stuck just short of a number. Sub 3:30. Sub 3. Sub 90. Sub 20. If that’s you, I won’t hand you a plan off a shelf and wish you luck. Every session is built around your week and rewritten when life gets in the way, because it will. Work, kids, illness, a bad night’s sleep. That’s the job.
Whichever option you pick, we start with a proper conversation about where you are now and what you actually want. Email, WhatsApp or a phone call, whatever suits you.
Why work with me
- 2:24:35 marathon, run while working full time, from a four hour start
- An unbroken daily running streak since 30 November 2015
- Back from surgery to a 15:40 parkrun, so I know what a comeback takes
- Qualified personal trainer since 2010, with a full strength programme included in Premium
- Still racing with Barnsley AC, not a coach who stopped ten years ago
- Athletes coached to marathons of 2:37:14, 2:52:35 and 2:59:18, a 3:15:47 at 57, a 37:17 10k and an 18:23 parkrun
- Minimum 3 month commitment
- A weekly training plan written around your life, not a template
- WhatsApp access, so I’m only ever a message away
- Pacing and intensity guidance for every session
- Race planning, pacing strategy and taper
- Someone holding you to the sessions that matter most
- Minimum 3 month commitment
- Everything in Standard, plus:
- A booked call with me every month
- Full analysis of your running data between calls
- Running form analysis and the corrective work that follows it, revisited each block (£60 on its own)
- A full periodised strength programme, progressed alongside your running
- Priority response, whenever you need it
Not ready for month to month coaching? I also build one off personalised plans for 5k, 10k, half marathon and marathon at £39, built on your own paces, and a running form analysis at £60 that tells you exactly what your stride is doing and what to do about it.
Free tool
What could you run off your current fitness?
Put in a recent race and get predicted times from 5K to marathon, plus your seven training paces from recovery to reps. Free, and it takes about a minute.
Recovery / Easy / Steady / Marathon / Threshold / Interval / Reps
Who you’re working with
Plans are managed by me and my partner, Naomi Drakeford. I’ve gone from a four hour marathon to 2:24:35, I’m a multiple race winner, and I’m out there in the running scene week in, week out.
Naomi has run 2:46 for the marathon, wins races regularly, and is permanent competition in our house over who’s the higher performer. She’s raced across triathlon and swimming too, from the Ironman World Championships to Olympic distance Worlds. Like me, she’s been working in the industry since 2010, with a real depth of experience across triathlon, swimming and running performance.
Athletes I coach
3:15:47 marathon
A six minute marathon personal best at 57 years old, and in the best shape he has ever been in. Start to finish of that block he went from strength to strength. Most importantly he says he enjoyed the process, which is half the battle.
Neil, coached athlete
18:23 parkrun
Like clockwork. Whatever I set, he hits it on the nose. Training comes in peaks and troughs as it does for all of us, and he is a big confidence player, so the job is keeping the belief up when a block goes quiet. Down to 18:23 at parkrun and a few sub-40 10ks along the way.
Tom, coached athlete
37:17 10k
Part of the Barnsley training group, with every session and every week written by me. Only been running a few years and has gone from strength to strength, most recently taking his 10k best to 37:17 at York.
Lee, coached athlete
Got a question first?
Drop me a message below, or email me directly at gareth@therunningmaninblue.co.uk. No pressure and no hard sell. If I’m not the right coach for you, I’ll tell you.
